Adapt and Thrive

Southgate School, Huddersfield (specialist provision, ages 4-16) · 25 Oct 2026

Southgate School in Huddersfield offers specialist provision for children aged 4–16, with outdoor adventures at the heart of its curriculum. Outdoor Learning Lead Ben Walker explains how the busy activity programme helps his students to gain confidence, independence and resilience.

If you call Ben Walker during the school day, you'll most likely find him on a hike with his students. "We're just training for our Snowdon expedition," he says, as he returns from a blustery 10 km walk across Marsden Moor with a group of Year 9s. "We're not really classroom-based," he adds. "We're always out and about."

At Southgate School, outdoor learning forms a substantial part of the curriculum. A school week could include anything from paddling canoes on the Calder Canal to archery at an outdoor activity centre or hiking through the surrounding countryside. The school has devised its own cycling curriculum as well as an 'expedition curriculum', which helps each student progress confidently from short local walks to camping expeditions.

Residential adventures:

Southgate School tries to offer every child a residential trip that works for them. Children who can't manage being in a group can do a 'buddy camp', where two staff members and one child stay in shepherd's huts overnight. Ben also takes groups to the Calvert Trust in the Lake District for longer residentials, where multiple additional needs can be catered for. If a student has complex medical needs that might otherwise be a barrier, parents and carers are invited on the residentials to make sure every child can go.

Ben knows that it's these adventures that make Southgate School special. "For some of our students, a week's residential will mean more to them than a whole year at school," says Ben. "It's what they remember most."

Getting the children outdoors, whatever their abilities, is crucial to their personal development. "A lot of them would never go out if we didn't take them!" says Ben. "Most of them have never been camping or gone on a residential." The children quickly learn to enjoy being outside, to work in teams and to develop their independence and confidence. "The students find out what they can do, and what they're interested in," says Ben. "Quite a few want to get climbing qualifications after we take them climbing. And some that have gone up Snowdon want to go and do Ben Nevis and Scafell next. They really get into it."

Duke of Edinburgh:

Ben also runs 14 DofE expeditions each year, taking small groups of four or five so that he can adapt the requirements to suit each child. Training begins with pitching a tent at school and getting used to rucksacks and walking boots, then progresses to local campsites before the final expedition on the North Yorkshire Moors. "The new criteria from DofE have been great," says Ben. "They mean we can use hostels and field centres instead of tents. The children still have to make the beds, cook their supper and clear up, so it's still a challenge, it's just more accessible for them."

Did you know?

In 2007, Southgate School became the first special needs school to walk the Hadrian's Wall National Trail – and they did it again in 2012 and 2019.

Ben's top tips

• Plan a long way ahead – campsites and hostels get booked up.
• Check the DofE requirements – they're more flexible than you think.
• For each visit team, take the staff members who know the children best.
• Build long-term relationships with local providers – it's rewarding and can cut costs.
• Encourage fundraising – our students do a lot of sponsored events.
• Apply for grants – we used one to buy a £6k all-terrain trike.